You can download it and could give it to colleagues, or ask your Employment Disability Service to do that on your behalf.

The hidden curriculum of work

One of the main challenges of people living with autism is understanding social rules. Social rules are the rules that apply to various social situations.

You have probably found them quite difficult, especially as the rules often change depending on where you are and who you are with. The workplace has its own set of social rules that you really need to know.

If someone is supporting you in the workplace, assisting you to understand the social rules of your particular workplace can be part of how they help you.

For general information about social rules in the workplace there is a great book called The Hidden Curriculum of Getting and Keeping a Job: Navigating the Social Landscape of Employment A Guide for Individuals With Autism Spectrum and Other Social-Cognitive Challenges by Judy Endow, Malcolm Mayfield and Brenda Smith Myles. You can find further information here.

Organisation skills

When faced with many different demands on your time at work, it is important to organise and prioritise the workload and effectively manage time.

When trying to adopt an organised approach to work tasks consider the following points.

Be aware:

Of all your work tasks (commitments).

Make a list of all your main activities to help you get an overview of the time you will need to set aside. This should make it easier for you to prioritise tasks.

Be realistic:

About what is involved and how long will it take.

Break down your work tasks and be realistic as to the time you will need to set aside to complete them.

Prioritise:

In order to effectively prioritise our time, consider the following questions:

What is urgent?

What is routine?

What can be prepared for?

What are the consequences?

Map it out:

Determine:

What needs to be done?

When will I do it?

How will I do it?

Once you have developed a clear idea of what your work tasks are you can start to make plans.

A timetable or action plan can be a useful resource to help you keep organised at work.

Establish routine and structure:

Establishing structure to your work day will help set the defined tasks for the day or week ahead.

Structure can be established by:

Setting a timetable or calendar for each day or week

Writing to-do list or checklist of tasks

Setting reminders or alarms to keep you on track

Setting daily or weekly goals (as identified by your manager)

Evaluate progress:

Ask yourself or your manager:

How am I getting on?

Am I on schedule?

What can I do to get back on schedule?

It is important that you take time to assess how effectively you are completing work tasks. You may need to re-assess timetables and action plans if work tasks are not being completed to schedule.

Time management:

Some tips for managing time:

After prioritising your tasks, make a To Do list and work through it in priority order

Clear your desk and plan your activities for the next day

List your time specific tasks, for example team meetings

Ensure that you have set aside enough time to plan your day/week

Do difficult jobs first thing in the morning when you are at your best

Complete minor tasks when you have less energy at the end of the day

Try to arrange set times for tasks so you can keep track of your progress

When you start a piece of work try to finish it

Assess how you use your time; are you making an effective use of it?

Work towards deadlines, if you are behind schedule re-assess, ask for help or agree new deadline

Dealing effectively with difficult people and bullying

You may have dealt with bullying at school and feel that you don’t need to re-visit the topic. However, we want to list some resources here as it’s not unusual for bullying to come up in adult life and it’s better to be forewarned and forearmed.

By the way, if you still feel upset about issues that happened at school, and especially if you sometimes feel upset, anxious or depressed please do look at our mental health section.

You don’t need to carry the scars of past bullying for life. Help is available to help you heal those scars and to set you up with anti-bullying skills for the future.

Unfortunately bullying can happen in the workplace and also at TAFE and university. We list some resources for you to have a look at so that you can know quickly if someone is bullying you and what to do about it.